Friday was our last travel day of the trip. It was a melancholy ride. Neither of us wanted to return home, but paperwork awaited us.
We avoided the interstates by driving US 280 to US41 to US 441 to FL 100 to US17 and then home.
We are already planning our next trip!
Saturday, September 8, 2007
Thursday, September 6, 2007
September 6
Happy birthday to Bobby!
We woke up and decided to go kayaking since it was a nice day. There was a slight breeze which kept the gnats off of us. We saw several egrets and herons, but no alligators. Last time we were here, we saw a few gators.
After kayaking, we rode our bicycles around the park. Bob was able to ride even though his gears are stuck in 7th.
Since this was our last night before returning home, we dined in one of the local restaurants.
We woke up and decided to go kayaking since it was a nice day. There was a slight breeze which kept the gnats off of us. We saw several egrets and herons, but no alligators. Last time we were here, we saw a few gators.
After kayaking, we rode our bicycles around the park. Bob was able to ride even though his gears are stuck in 7th.
We downloaded more caches near on the road to Albany and searched for those. One of the caches was hidden near a new historical marker.
It was a clever hide.
Since this was our last night before returning home, we dined in one of the local restaurants.
It was great and we recommend it to anyone who is in the Cordele area.
After dinner we sat and watched the fish jumping in the lake in front of our campsite. It was a great trip!
September 5
Wednesday morning we went geo-caching in Cordele. We found 3 of 4 caches we had downloaded. The one we didn't find was at Cracker Barrel. There were too many muggles around even though it wasn't time for lunch! We also found another travel bug. We will move both of our travel bugs to Florida.
We hiked around the campground. It was much easier than any of our other stops due to the lower elevation and flatter ground. There also was not much humidity even though the temperature reached the mid-90s.
We didn't take the camera with us so there are no pictures for today.
Wednesday morning we went geo-caching in Cordele. We found 3 of 4 caches we had downloaded. The one we didn't find was at Cracker Barrel. There were too many muggles around even though it wasn't time for lunch! We also found another travel bug. We will move both of our travel bugs to Florida.
We hiked around the campground. It was much easier than any of our other stops due to the lower elevation and flatter ground. There also was not much humidity even though the temperature reached the mid-90s.
We didn't take the camera with us so there are no pictures for today.
September 4
We left Cloudland Canyon for parts unknown. All we knew when we left was that we were heading south toward home. We plan to be home by the weekend.
We drove US 27 to Columbus. For those of you who know how we like the famcamp at Benning, no, we did not stop there, we kept driving!
We drove to Georgia Veterans’ State Park. We stayed there once before and enjoyed it. It is located on Lake Blackshear outside of Cordele. We were hoping to ride the train, but it only runs on Saturday this week. We will be able to kayak and try our bikes. Bob’s bike is stuck in 7th gear and difficult to ride up hills. This park is much flatter than Cloudland!
After setting up camp we went to the lodge to check their wifi. We were able to connect and check e-mail. We also downloaded 4 geo-caches for Wednesday.
We drove US 27 to Columbus. For those of you who know how we like the famcamp at Benning, no, we did not stop there, we kept driving!
We drove to Georgia Veterans’ State Park. We stayed there once before and enjoyed it. It is located on Lake Blackshear outside of Cordele. We were hoping to ride the train, but it only runs on Saturday this week. We will be able to kayak and try our bikes. Bob’s bike is stuck in 7th gear and difficult to ride up hills. This park is much flatter than Cloudland!
After setting up camp we went to the lodge to check their wifi. We were able to connect and check e-mail. We also downloaded 4 geo-caches for Wednesday.
September 3
Monday we started the day by hiking the 2 mile loop around the primitive camping area. It was a nice walk through the woods. There would have been streams running through the area, but there was no water due to the drought.
After our walk, we drove Lookout Mountain Scenic Highway to the hang gliding area. We watched as people ran off the ramp on mountainside and into the air!
The landing area was in an area north of Trenton. There were also people in ultra-light planes pulling gliders up above the mountain take off area, then releasing them to return to the field.
The yellow plane is an ultra-light and the white triangles are the hang gliders on the field.
One hang glider that was released above the mountain flew over our heads. The pilot told us we had time to suit up for our own ride.
While we were in the area, we found the 2 caches that had been hidden there.
When we returned to Cloudland, we walked the West Rim Trail for the last time. The campground was down to 4 occupied campsites. Even though there were few people at the campground, we saw many people on the trail. It was the first time we saw anyone else hiking while we were.
We packed our kayaks and bikes to ready for departure Tuesday morning. We enjoyed our stay at Cloudland Canyon State Park.
Tuesday would be a travel day.
After our walk, we drove Lookout Mountain Scenic Highway to the hang gliding area. We watched as people ran off the ramp on mountainside and into the air!
The landing area was in an area north of Trenton. There were also people in ultra-light planes pulling gliders up above the mountain take off area, then releasing them to return to the field.
The yellow plane is an ultra-light and the white triangles are the hang gliders on the field.One hang glider that was released above the mountain flew over our heads. The pilot told us we had time to suit up for our own ride.
While we were in the area, we found the 2 caches that had been hidden there.
When we returned to Cloudland, we walked the West Rim Trail for the last time. The campground was down to 4 occupied campsites. Even though there were few people at the campground, we saw many people on the trail. It was the first time we saw anyone else hiking while we were.
We packed our kayaks and bikes to ready for departure Tuesday morning. We enjoyed our stay at Cloudland Canyon State Park.
Tuesday would be a travel day.
September 2
Sunday we ate breakfast at Krystal in Trenton, Georgia, so we could update our blog and download geo-caches from the website.
There are 3 major grocery chains located in Trenton and each one has a cache located in the parking lot.
As we worked our way back up the mountain, we found a great city park. The park was near the old train depot. Many businesses from the area donated portions of the park. There were 2 baseball diamonds, a basket ball court, a batting cage, playgrounds for all ages, a bandstand, and picnic area.
There was a wood carving at the entrance to the park.
Naturally, there was a cache located in the park.
The nearby train depot also had a cache.
Near the entrance to Cloudland, we found a cache with a travel bug. We haven't researched it yet to find out where it has been or if it has a special destination.
After caching, we returned to the campground. We found 8 of 10 caches.
We walked the campground loop to see how long the campers were staying. Most were there for the long weekend. We spent a lazy afternoon at the camper.
That evening we toasted another successful day of retirement.
There are 3 major grocery chains located in Trenton and each one has a cache located in the parking lot.
As we worked our way back up the mountain, we found a great city park. The park was near the old train depot. Many businesses from the area donated portions of the park. There were 2 baseball diamonds, a basket ball court, a batting cage, playgrounds for all ages, a bandstand, and picnic area.
There was a wood carving at the entrance to the park.
Naturally, there was a cache located in the park.
The nearby train depot also had a cache.
Near the entrance to Cloudland, we found a cache with a travel bug. We haven't researched it yet to find out where it has been or if it has a special destination.
After caching, we returned to the campground. We found 8 of 10 caches.
We walked the campground loop to see how long the campers were staying. Most were there for the long weekend. We spent a lazy afternoon at the camper.
That evening we toasted another successful day of retirement.
Sunday, September 2, 2007
September 1
Saturday we drove northeast to Chickamauga National Battlefield. Chickamauga and Chattanooga is the largest national battlefield authorized by Congress between 1890 and 1899. Shiloh, Gettysburg, and Vicksburg were the other battlefields. We enjoyed the visitors’ center with the old guns. The center has almost 350 shoulder arms dating from the 1500s until the early 1900s. There were a lot of people of all ages enjoying the battlefield. Many runners and cyclists were using the trails. We drove around the battlefield and read many of the markers and monuments. Bob and I walked up Wilder Brigade Monument. Here we are after walking up the 136 steps to get to the top of the 85 foot tall tower.
This is a view of the tower from an area near the parking lot.
As we were leaving Chickamauga we saw a sign for the local Highland games and went to investigate. It was much smaller than the one we attended at Letchworth State Park, NY. This one was located at the historical mill and feed store.
We saw square dancing and line dancing, but nothing that resembled the highland games.
There were 6 booths with items to buy. Only 4 of them had Scottish items.
We were told there would be a Celtic wedding later in the afternoon, but we returned to the campground as there was not enough to keep us busy until then.
There were 3 empty campsites when we returned.
This is a view of the tower from an area near the parking lot.
As we were leaving Chickamauga we saw a sign for the local Highland games and went to investigate. It was much smaller than the one we attended at Letchworth State Park, NY. This one was located at the historical mill and feed store. We saw square dancing and line dancing, but nothing that resembled the highland games. There were 6 booths with items to buy. Only 4 of them had Scottish items.We were told there would be a Celtic wedding later in the afternoon, but we returned to the campground as there was not enough to keep us busy until then.There were 3 empty campsites when we returned.
August 31
Friday we took a trip into Chattanooga. The drive along Lookout Mountain’s ridge provided us with a view to the east and west. We found a place to park near the riverfront. We found a shuttle stop (Chattanooga provides a free electric shuttle bus in the downtown area) and rode around town to get our bearings before setting off on foot.
We visited Warehouse Row which is two blocks that were once warehouses, but now house an upscale shopping area. We were disappointed because most of the shops were vacant. From there we walked back to the river area and had lunch in Big River Brewery.
When we returned to the campground, it was full. What a change from earlier in the week!
We visited Warehouse Row which is two blocks that were once warehouses, but now house an upscale shopping area. We were disappointed because most of the shops were vacant. From there we walked back to the river area and had lunch in Big River Brewery.
The riverfront has an aquarium, IMAX Theater, and Discovery Center (hands on science). Behind the aquarium there is a pedestrian bridge across the Tennessee River.
When we returned to the campground, it was full. What a change from earlier in the week!
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